This application claims the priority of German application 196 28 181.4 filed in Germany on Jul. 12, 1996, the disclosure of which is expressly incorporated by reference herein.
The invention relates to a bearing arrangement for an internal-combustion engine which forms a unit with a transmission, which unit is mounted transversely of a vehicle driven thereby and is held on the vehicle body by way of at least one bearing and one torque support.
From European Patent Document EP 0 297 226 B1, a bearing arrangement for an internal-combustion engine is known by way of which an engine transmission unit is held in the vehicle body. The bearing arrangement for the unit installed transversely in the vehicle consists of two torque supports connected with the front wall of the body and arranged vertically offset with respect to one another. Additional elastic bearings are provided on the engine and on the transmission case. These bearings are arranged on both sides of a center-of-mass plane.
It is an object of the invention to provide an improved bearing arrangement for a drive assembly in a motor vehicle which, in addition to a simple construction, has a space-saving arrangement of the bearings. Furthermore, a targeted support in the case of the charge cycle forces is to be ensured.
According to the invention, this object is achieved by means of an arrangement of the above referred to type, wherein a first elastic bearing is arranged on the transmission case and second and third additional bearings are arranged on a face of the engine compartment, said second bearing being constructed as an elastic stop bearing and said third bearing comprising a torque support which extends against a vehicle driving direction, and wherein the first and second bearings are arranged on the transmission case approximately in a horizontal plane.
The principal advantages achieved by means of the invention are that, for the bearing arrangement of the drive assembly, only three bearings are required, a torque support and a stop bearing being provided on the frontal side of the engine compartment. Another bearing is fastened on the transmission case. The bearings are arranged such locally with respect to the drive unit that a targeted movement of the drive assembly, particularly in the case of charge cycle forces and in the case of an idling vibration is achieved and the bearings, in addition, can be arranged in low-vibration areas. During the idling vibration, the drive assembly will swivel about a swivel axis extending through the two upper bearings. In the case of charge cycle reactions, an imaginary swivel axis will occur between the three bearings.
The stop bearing, together with the bearing fastened on the transmission case, is provided approximately in a horizontal plane by means of which a swivel axis of the drive assembly is formed which extends slightly diagonally with respect to this plane.
The stop bearing has an elastic bearing element with stops which are constructed in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle and may have an elastic construction. As a result, an elastic limitation of the swivel movement about the swivel axis is to take place. In particular, one stop has a curved construction and the opposite stop has a plane construction which permits an optimal stop function during a swivel movement of the drive assembly.
The elastic bearings for forming the swivelling axis are preferably constructed with a horizontal axis, whereas the stop bearing has a vertical axis. The bearing on the transmission case is arranged on the top side of the case so that the drive assembly virtually hangs on this bearing. The two other bearings are arranged such that the drive assembly stands on these bearings.
Other objects, advantages and novel features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the invention when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.